The British political repercussions of the Enron collapse centre around whether Labour's sponsorship from the company led to a change in government energy policy.

Downing Street has dismissed allegations that the UK government is "enveloped in sleaze" over its links with Enron.

The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are demanding an independent inquiry into what they say could be an affair about cash-for-access.

Labour's relationship with Enron's accountants, Andersen, has also raised questions, especially as the firm was taken off the unofficial blacklist for government work, where it had been placed after the De Lorean car scandal in the early 1980s.

The peer, a former Conservative energy minister, joined Enron as a non-executive director in 1994 and sat on the corporation's audit committee.

Investigators say they do not believe Lord Wakeham was party to any fraud, but he could still face lawsuits from those who accuse him of failing to make public concerns about the energy giant.